Ask a Kellogg Student

Talk to current MBA students about life in MBA programs (not for app advice/discussion)
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Ask a Kellogg Student

by beatthegmat » Mon Nov 16, 2009 11:37 am
Want to talk to a Kellogg student about the Kellogg student experience? Ask here!

We're lucky to have two Kellogg representatives fielding your questions: Please note that this isn't a discussion thread (or forum) for application advice. It's meant for talking about life inside the Kellogg program.

A big thanks to our Kellogg volunteers!
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by beatthegmat » Mon Nov 16, 2009 1:23 pm
Seed question for Angela and Sandra:

What have you enjoyed most about your first year?
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by dmateer25 » Mon Nov 16, 2009 3:17 pm
Hi Angela and Sandra! It's great to have you both here answering questions.

I have a few questions.

What made you both choose Kellogg over any other schools you got in to?
What is student life like at Kellogg? Do you spend a lot of time with your classmates outside of the classroom?

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by acheung » Mon Nov 16, 2009 8:34 pm
Hi everyone! Happy to be sharing about what it's like to be at Kellogg -- I know choosing a business school can be a tough process so please let Sandra and me know how we can help.

Re: Eric's question, I'd have to say the best thing so far has really been the people I've met. I think there's often a notion that there's a certain population of people that attend business school (e.g. consultants, investment bankers, etc.) but there really are so many people from diverse backgrounds -- from different countries, different career paths, etc. I have peers that have worked for non-profits, for defense companies, owned their own companies -- you name it. It's been really cool to meet all these people that you otherwise probably never would cross paths with and find out how much you could have in common with someone who seems so different from you.
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by acheung » Mon Nov 16, 2009 8:44 pm
Re: what made me choose Kellogg, there were a few different things. I think first and foremost when talking to Kellogg alumni they were all so enthusiastic and excited about their experience there, and excited that I was thinking about going there. They all loved their time at Kellogg and were so willing to share their experiences, and I wanted to be at a school where my classmates were really excited to be there. Secondly, I think the culture at Kellogg is really supportive and collaborative. Students really help each other however they can, from study groups to interview prep groups. You would think that for recruiting people could get really competitive but honestly students at Kellogg really recognize that we can help each other be better than any of us could do on our own. I think the second years have been particularly helpful since they were in our shoes just a year ago. I've set up time to talk to second years about internships they've had and everyone has taken my meetings and been really open and honest with their advice. It's an envrionment where you can reach out to anyone and they will help you. And lastly, I'm in the MMM program at Kellogg which a dual MBA/MEM program with the McCormick School of Engineering at Northwestern. The MEM side offers classes in design and operations. I came from product management in high tech before Kellogg and wanted to strengthen my skills in product innovation as well as how to successfully manage internal operations to launch to market. I thought the MMM program would be a perfect fit in terms of the product development and operations mixed with the general business education.
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by acheung » Mon Nov 16, 2009 8:50 pm
Re: student life at Kellogg, it's definitely really busy! Kellogg is very student-driven so there are tons of activities to get involved in -- pretty much anything you'd want to do there's a club for it or you can start one. There are industry and function clubs for professional interests as well as a lot of social clubs just for fun. I'm involved in the High Tech Club and the dance club. I think pretty much everyone at Kellogg is really involved. Kellogg is also a really social place. There are events going on pretty much every night -- from club social events to section socials or just friends hanging out. Every Friday there's a happy hour at school. So there's definitely a lot of seeing your classmates outside the classroom. I think Kellogg does a great job of fostering getting to know each other. Before school many 1st year students participate in trips with 5 2nd year leaders and 20 1st years so they can start school knowing a group of friends. Orientation is also all about bonding with your classmates. (You can check out my article about orientation at Kellogg for more specifics.)

I would actually say one thing about business school is you have to make a bit of an effort to keep in touch with your family and friends outside of business school :) You're in a little bit of a bubble here since you're doing things for school or with classmates almost all the time so it's important to reach out to the rest of the people in your life.
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by beatthegmat » Mon Nov 16, 2009 9:11 pm
Thanks Angela for sharing your perspective, really awesome!
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by dmateer25 » Tue Nov 17, 2009 3:21 am
Thanks Angela for the thorough responses!

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by brianm » Wed Dec 02, 2009 3:52 pm
Hi Angela,

I will be applying to Kellogg for round 2 for the two year MBA program to transition from innovation consulting to high-tech product management/marketing. Since you said your prior job was in this industry, can you explain how you think the caliber of Kellogg's high-tech education is compared to other schools located closer to Silicon Valley and the Pacific Northwest (I know you haven't gone to these schools' MBA programs but if you have any thoughts that would be helpful)?

Beyond Kellogg, I am looking at Texas, UCLA, and Berkeley to venture into this field. Did you happen to look at any of these schools, and if so, what did you think of them relating to high-tech?

Finally, what kinds of activities does the High Tech Club set up?

Thanks very much!
Brian

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by futureMBA » Thu Dec 03, 2009 3:04 pm
Hi,

I have a question similar to that of Brian. The difference is that I am applying for a part-time program.

All my education and professional experience so far has been in technology industry (software to be precise). I am planning to pursue an MBA in technology.

1. Which school is better between Haas and Kellogg for Technology?
2. How easy is it to get in contact with recruiters from companies such as Google, Microsoft, Oracle?
3. How often do they visit Kellogg?
4. What activities do they sponsor or do on campus?
5. What are typical ways for students to get jobs from those companies?

Thanks.

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by acheung » Thu Dec 03, 2009 8:20 pm
Hi there,

I think certainly the caliber of the education regarding the high tech industry is very strong at Kellogg as well as the other schools you mentioned. I can't speak particularly to the part-time programs since I didn't investigate that option when I was applying to school but I can share my overall thoughts. Speaking specifically for Kellogg, we have a number of classes focusing on technology as well as extracurricular activities. For example, there is a popular Tech Marketing class that is taught by a professor that has consulted for many of the big high tech firms like Microsoft and others. Personally I am part of the MMM program at Kellogg, which is a dual MBA and Masters of Engineering Management (through the McCormick School of Engineering at Northwestern). The MEM side focuses on design and operations, which can certainly be applied to different industries but I felt those functions would certainly be a good foundation for my interest in high tech.

The High Tech Club, similar to other industry clubs at Kellogg, offers ways to learn about the industry as well as prepare for recruiting. The club puts on events like bringing in a variety of speakers, and we recently kicked off the 1st year interview prep groups for this year. These are groups of 4-5 1st years that are interested in the same industry (in this case, high tech) that are paired with a 2nd year who interviewed for that industry the previous year. The interview prep groups (IPGs) are ways that students can share industry trends, company research, and practice interviewing together. The club has also put together a wiki where students share notes of their experiences interviewing with and interning at different tech companies, as well as general news or trends within the industry.

Independent from the High Tech Club (but they partner closely), there are other high tech focused activities at Kellogg such as the High Tech Trek and Kellogg Technology Conference. Students organize a number of industry-specific treks where they will visit with a series of companies. For example, the Bay Area High Tech Trek will be taking place in a couple of weeks during our winter break. A group of 5 1st year students have set up 3 days of visits with various high tech firms in the bay area. In these visits, we learn more about the companies and get to ask our questions of employees, often Kellogg alumni. It's a great opportunity to not only visit the companies and learn more, but also express your interest for the industry/company through your participation. The Technology Conference takes place for one day in the spring and again is a very student-driven activity (students arrange industry speakers, company sponsors, manage logistics, etc.). This year will be the 16th year of the conference and the theme is the challenges of monetizing emerging technologies.

So I think overall Kellogg has no lack of resources to help you learn about the high tech industry and recruit for a job in the field. I think where Kellogg has a larger challenge compared to schools on the west coast is in on-campus recruiting for high tech firms. The large firms like Microsoft, Apple, Sony, Dell, RIM, Adobe, Amazon, Intel, etc. do come here for company presentations or networking nights, and often on-campus recruiting - but obviously firms in the bay area are more likely to visit the local schools. So there are some large firms that choose not to come on campus, and as you might expect, certainly many of the smaller firms don't come to campus either. However, I do want to be clear that many of these companies still very much appreciate Kellogg MBAs and hire them for internships and full-time positions, just more within off-campus recruiting. (Kellogg is still a top business school with considerable name recognition.) So this means more of applying on company websites versus the school career management system and likely phone interviews for first rounds. (It also means that learning about the company may be more up to you since they are not doing a company presentation on campus, so that's where events like the treks can really help out.) It's also worth noting that roughly 9% of each graduating class in the past few years has gone into the high tech industry, in a variety of functions, and there is a strong Kellogg alumni network at many of the major firms. High Tech is not one of the big two career paths from b school (e.g. consulting or investment banking) but there is still a strong community within Kellogg, and it's growing.

I'll probably have more to add once I get more into the recruiting process myself - which is going to ramp up pretty soon - but feel free to ask any additional questions you have!
Angela
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by brianm » Fri Dec 04, 2009 7:45 am
Wow thanks (and thanks to futuremba for asking more of my questions :)) for the detailed response! Based on my research I had a general idea of the quality of the program but it really helps me to understand it from your point of view.

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by futureMBA » Fri Dec 04, 2009 4:01 pm
Thank you for your detailed comments and thoughts Angela.

Regards.

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by nittinj » Mon Dec 14, 2009 2:37 pm
Hello,

Really appreciate the great insight you are sharing with us. I had three specific queries -

I wanted to know- apprx what % of your batch hails from traditional industries ( Industrial goods, automotives, Oil and Gas etc) !

Does Kellogg/ Northwest Univ allow spouses to take/audit some courses and if there are any employment avenues for partner within and outside the university on part time basis ?

Typically do international students gets any need based scholarships in 1st or 2nd year of the program.

Thank You,
Nitin

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by acheung » Mon Dec 14, 2009 8:09 pm
Hey Nitin,

Actually the answers to all your questions are available on the Kellogg website (www.kellogg.northwestern.edu). There are statistics on the entering class of 2009 (e.g. my year). It doesn't break down the industries to the level of detail that you indicated but will give you a general idea.

Kellogg allows significant others of students to audit classes -- and many are even involved in extracurricular activities at Kellogg. "Joint Ventures" (or "JVs") is our name for the significant others. On the Kellogg website, if you click on the "Beyond the classroom" link there is info for spouses & partners -- and it can get you connected with the JV group. (They offer career resources as well.)

There is also information about the different types of scholarships available. If you have specific questions beyond what is on the website regarding the scholarships, I would contact the admissions office directly.

Hope that helps -- thanks! Let me know if you have trouble finding the information and maybe I can post the direct links here.

--Angela
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